10
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Perhaps there was some etiquette I was unaware of. But I had clearly seen the other young ladies filling up their dance cards earlier.
Aileen stared at her dance card with a serious expression for a moment, then suddenly realized that this wasn't what was important right now.
"……."
Aileen looked around and lowered her head, still holding the card in her hand. The situation from the Triumphal March earlier that day was repeating itself.
Everyone in the ballroom was staring at Aileen. They looked at the woman surrounded by tall, sturdy men with shocked faces, whispering about who she could possibly be.
However, the difference from the Triumphal March earlier was that the nobles here immediately recognized Aileen.
The rumor that the Grand Duke cherished the daughter of his deceased nanny was widespread in society.
"Ah... could she be the one Archduke Erzeht cherishes...?"
"So that's what she's like. Hmm, it's a bit unexpected."
"Isn't it strange? Attending a ball without even making her debut. Don't you think?"
"I heard her family is struggling."
"The soldiers are probably doing this because of His Excellency's orders, right?"
The whispering voices flew like daggers and pierced deeply. Listening to the malicious words, I felt sorry for the soldiers who had asked me to dance.
If it weren't for me, they would have been dancing with the young ladies they wanted. They were getting unnecessary flak because of me.
Come to think of it, it had been so long since I had learned social dances that I would probably make a lot of mistakes if I tried to dance. It would be better to apologize to the soldiers who had asked me to dance and just go back after congratulating Cesare, as originally planned.
Having made up her mind, Aileen turned to Diego, whose name she had written on the dance card first.
"Sir Diego."
"Ah, Senon and Michele will be a little late. They have some things to take care of. They might not even be able to make it."
That wasn't what I was going to ask, but it was something I was curious about.
"I see. I was hoping to see them both, but that's a shame."
Before Aileen could open her mouth again, Diego grinned and spoke like a street thug.
"How about a cup of tea sometime soon? I bought a doll. It's amazing. A huge rabbit doll."
What could a rabbit doll that was so amazing it was unbelievable even be? I couldn't even guess. While Aileen was momentarily distracted by the rabbit doll story, Diego and Rohan exchanged a brief glance.
"Aileen."
Rohan smiled gently. His face, which had been as gruff as a bear, softened in front of Aileen.
"Were you uncomfortable coming here? I should have gone to pick you up myself. I'm sorry."
"No, not at all. His Excellency took care of everything..."
Aileen fidgeted with her glasses and stammered an excuse.
"He even sent someone to help me dress up, but I felt pressured and sent her back. I should have just dressed up before coming if I had known this would happen."
Unintentionally, I had become the center of attention. If there was anywhere to hide, I would have hidden a long time ago. Rohan chuckled softly at Aileen's embarrassment.
"If you had dressed up properly, you would have been even more troubled."
Following Rohan, Diego added a word from the side.
"That's right. Every man in the capital would have flocked to you, Miss."
Aileen blinked, not understanding what they were saying. She wondered if they were talking to her, and then she remembered something she had forgotten.
"Oh, right, the dance requests..."
"Have you seen the garden? It's changed a lot."
Just as Aileen was about to talk about the dance requests, Rohan asked first. He paused for a moment, thinking, and then continued.
"The greenhouse, I mean. I heard they brought in new plants from the East."
"The, the East?"
Aileen stuttered, her heart pounding too hard.
"Yes. I heard they're very rare plants."
When Cesare was at the Imperial Palace, I was free to look around the Imperial Palace gardens. I vividly remembered wandering around, mesmerized by the plants that I had only seen in books.
But for the past three years, I hadn't been able to go near the Imperial Palace gardens because Cesare wasn't there.
"Wouldn't it be nice to take a look at the garden for a while before His Excellency arrives?"
"Should I?"
The desire for plants crushed the desire to go home. Aileen asked with an excited face if he could guide her through the garden, and Rohan replied as if he had been waiting for it, saying that he would escort her.
It wasn't until Aileen had excitedly gone out to the garden with Rohan that she remembered the dance requests again.
"Ah..."
Rohan, who was guiding her to the greenhouse, turned back with a puzzled look at Aileen's sigh. Aileen looked at the dance card on her wrist and made a tearful face.
"I feel like everyone missed the chance to mingle with other young ladies because of me. So I was going to skip the dancing and just greet His Excellency and go back."
"Please don't do that, Aileen."
Aileen smiled slightly at Rohan's serious dissuasion.
"Then shall I dance one song only with Lord Rotan? And let the others go."
"...That sounds good."
Thanks to Rohan, who nodded readily, Aileen was able to relieve a mountain of worries and smile. As they talked and laughed together, they were soon in front of the greenhouse.
"Take your time looking around."
"What about Lord Rotan?"
"I have to return to the ballroom. You don't have to worry about the way back."
It seemed like he was going to send someone to pick me up. Aileen thanked him and went into the greenhouse alone.
The inside of the glass greenhouse was somewhat stuffy. Moonlight streamed in, so it wasn't dark, but it wasn't bright either.
As I walked inside little by little to find the new plants from the East, I heard the sound of the greenhouse door opening behind me.
"Lord Rotan?"
Aileen turned around, thinking that Rohan had come back. And then she froze. Cesare was walking into the greenhouse with his characteristic leisurely gait.
He was wearing a ceremonial uniform that was slightly different from the uniform he had worn at the Triumphal March today. The man standing under the moonlight at night looked even more dangerous. His lips, which seemed to whisper sweet nothings, wore a pleasant smile.
Aileen belatedly lowered her head. She sent one leg back, bent her knee, and lifted the hem of her dress slightly, paying her respects to the royalty.
"Archduke Erzeht."
Cesare also called out in accordance with etiquette.
"Lady Elrod."
"Congratulations... on your victory."
I hesitated as I offered my congratulations, unsure if my etiquette was correct. Then I heard a laughing sound. Aileen slowly raised her head.
The man standing against the moonlight was laughing heartily. His eyes, containing red pupils, curved like crescent moons. His smiling face was so beautiful that Aileen could only stare. Completely captivated by him, she belatedly asked cautiously.
"Did I make a mistake?"
"No."
Cesare shook his head with a smiling face.
"It reminded me of the old days."
He reached out his hand to Aileen. His hand, wearing a leather glove, tapped the dance card.
"You have to give me a song too, Aileen."
Flustered, I took off the dance card and offered it to him politely. Cesare checked the signatures written inside and chuckled briefly. He wrote his name on the very first empty line.
[Cesare Traon Cal Ergette]
As if that was his place from the beginning, there was no hesitation in the signature.
After finishing the signature with his elegant handwriting, Cesare hung the dance card on Aileen's wrist himself.
Aileen looked at the card dangling from her wrist. She thought that if other people saw the dance card, they would think it was a petition from the soldiers.
'To think that His Excellency would ask me to dance too.'
I was now stuck dancing awkwardly at the ball. I was already dreading what people would whisper as they watched Cesare dance with me.
It would be useless to make excuses to Cesare that I was afraid to dance because I might make a mistake. He would answer that he would lead me, so I shouldn't worry.
He was the kind of person who would actually do that. Cesare was the one who taught Aileen social dances. Cesare personally became her dance partner and taught her how to dance, taking care of the young child.
The reason why Aileen's dancing was still clumsy was because she couldn't finish learning. While she was in the middle of learning to dance, her mother caught her and scolded her severely.
"How dare you be rude to the Prince! To make him waste his time on your mere dance lessons!"
